Furniture & Art Placement from a Recent Job

This week we wanted to give you a little glimpse into a job we recently completed (and loved)!

We had the privilege of helping an elderly client move from an apartment on the second floor down to the first floor in an assisted living complex. What seemed like a pretty simple "move" became much more meaningful for our team as we got started. 

Our client gave us permission to give her a fresh look in her space. From the furniture set up to art placement, we loved every minute! 

As we began gathering her artwork and memorabilia from international travels, we got very excited. It was such a fun experience to revel at her artwork and hand crafted books as we found special places in her apartment for them. We could see her light up as we got to enjoy the art she had created and collected throughout her life. Each piece had a story that she was eager to tell. Decorating her living space became more like an intimate art exhibit tour with the artist herself. 

We were reminded of the importance of surrounding yourself with things that bring you joy. For you that may mean memories, collections, or pieces of art. 

Packing up the Memories

There often comes a time in all our lives or our loved one's lives when we have to say goodbye to the place we've called home.

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This is never an easy transition for multiple reasons. In this particular case, the homeowner needed assistance with everyday life and wasn't able to live on her own any longer. Not being able to take much with her, her daughter and son-in-law have been left with the task of clearing out the remaining items from her former home. However, they have busy lives of their own both working and raising two active school age children. After almost 6 months of the condo sitting untouched, waiting to be gone through, HYD got the call to help.

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This situation is all too familiar to so many folks. A parent's home filled with memories, trinkets, collections, photographs, furniture (both valuable and not), attics, that are so overwhelming to go through. In this case, we've been able to go through every cabinet, dresser drawer, bookshelf, box, closet, trunk, and room to categorize, label, box up, and create order so that when the daughter and son-in-law come, they can easily decide what to keep, what to sell, and what to donate. 

HYD feels honored to be trusted with such an important job which is why we take such care with each object we touch, paper we read, photo we categorize, and memory we help to preserve. It all stays confidential and our clients can feel safe knowing that we will find the right home(s) for any items they choose not to hold on to.

This particular homeowner is a very talented artist. We thought you'd enjoy just a few treasures we found as we organized her belongings. The first is her "Ideal Wardrobe" handmade book from the late 1940s. The latter photos are just a couple of the many wonderful sketches and prints we found. Enjoy...

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Thanks so much for coming along with HYD as we journey through our clients' stories and memories. It is a job we cherish and look forward to each day. If you have any questions or interest in learning how we might help you or a loved one with transitioning into a new home, please don't ever hesitate to call or email us at 865.245.9080 or info@helpyoudwell.com.

We've also updated our website in a few places to describe in more detail how and what HYD can assist with especially related to estate transitions and organized moving and unpacking.

And as always, feel free to drop by The Hive to visit us anytime we're in!

Capsule Wardrobe: A Help You Dwell Challenge

I'm taking the plunge and I'm inviting you to join me.

If you aren't familiar with the concept of a capsule wardrobe, essentially, it is a simplified wardrobe of versatile pieces that you love wearing. In other words, for each season, you pick a certain number of items and wear only those. For the Summer season, I will be picking 37 items (including tops, bottoms, dresses, outerwear, and shoes) and donating, or packing away the rest.

I have a closet and a dresser full of clothes that don't often get worn. I gravitate towards a handful of clothes that are my favorites. I love clothes but I hate my tendency to try on 85 different outfits only to go back to those favorite pieces that make me feel awesome. In an effort to practice what I preach when it comes to an organized and decluttered life style, I am committing to a capsule wardrobe plan for my summer.

One of my 2 closets currently

Why am I doing this?

1. I want to buy less but buy better quality.

2. I want my mornings to be more simplified

3. I'm interested to see whether I get bored wearing the same items in various combinations or whether it's freeing to have less to choose from.

4.My closet space is limited and not designed well. I want to be able to see clearly what I have and currently I have too many clothes for my space.

So, over the course of the next week I"ll be narrowing down my wardrobe and will report back in 2 weeks to let you know what items I chose for my Summer Capsule and how it's all going.

For more information about what a capsule wardrobe is, check out this description. Want to know how to build one? Here is a guide.